Nancy’s Bar-B-Q, a locally-owned barbecue restaurant at Burns Court in downtown Sarasota, will open a second restaurant on Lakewood Ranch’s Main Street this year.
A storefront on Main Street shows signs and images advertising that Nancy’s Bar-B-Q is coming soon. Owner Nancy Krohngold could not be reached for comment Wednesday, but previously told the Herald-Tribune about her interest in expanding to the Lakewood Ranch and University Park communities.
Last summer, Krohngold told the Herald-Tribune that she was in negotiations with Benderson Development to open a second restaurant in a shopping plaza at University Parkway and Honore Avenue, near the new Mall at University Town Center. However, plans to build the out parcel building in The Square at University Town Center, a shopping plaza on the north side of University Parkway with tenants like The Home Depot, Staples, Starbucks and Carrabba’s Italian Grill, never materialized.
“We have a dedicated customer base in Lakewood Ranch, and I would love to serve that market,” Krohngold told the Herald-Tribune in September.
The goal is to continue to operate the original restaurant at 301 S. Pineapple Ave, but have a larger facility in Lakewood Ranch to accommodate a growing need for Nancy’s expanding catering business.
Nancy’s Bar-B-Q is a joint venture between Nancy Krohngold and the Caragiulo brothers. Krohngold has been serving barbecue to Sarasota residents for more than a decade. Her restaurant officially opened in Sarasota in 2011.
Lakewood Ranch’s Main Street lost some tenants – like Chico’s and Soma – in October when the Mall at University Town Center opened at University Parkway and Interstate 75. Fast N Fresh, Starbucks, Lakewood Ranch Cinemas and several other eateries still populate the community’s Main Street.

For more shopping news in Southwest Florida, follow reporter Justine Griffin on Twitter and Facebook or email her at justine.griffin@heraldtribune.com. Read What’s In Store in print on Tuesdays.

Paddy Wagon Irish Pub will open a new bar on Main Street according to Jesse Biter, local entrepreneur and owner of several commercial properties in downtown Sarasota.

Paddy Wagon, which has eight other Southwest Florida locations, join’s Tampa concept, Taco Bus and Evie’s, which are currently constructing new restaurant and bar locations nearby in a building owned by Biter.

“There’s a lot of people investing a lot of money into Main Street right now,” Biter said. “Which is great because there’s a need for more entertainment in downtown.”

Paddy Wagon has another bar at 3877 Clark Road in Sarasota and at 4402 E. S.R. 64 in Bradenton.

World of Beer announced earlier this year that the craft beer bar chain will open inside the former Eat Here space on Main Street. Ker’s WingHouse opened earlier this year in the former Half Shell Oyster House location.

As for retail, Fit2Run, Alex and Ani and Fugate’s are the newest brands to join the mix on Main Street.

For more shopping news in Southwest Florida, follow reporter Justine Griffin on Twitter and Facebook or email her at justine.griffin@heraldtribune.com. Read What’s In Store in print on Tuesdays.

The Mall at University Town Center isn’t the only new retail game in town. Several other chains are expanding around the region.

Here’s a list of new developments that recently opened or are coming soon:

J.McLaughlin opens Longboat Key store

J.McLaughlin, a boutique retailer with a location on Main Street in downtown Sarasota, will open a new store on Longboat Key next month.

The new store will see men’s and women’s fashions and accessories at its 1,300-square-foot location at 525 Bay Isles Pkwy. The store will open on Nov. 14.

The downtown Sarasota store will stay open.

The opening of a second store in the Southwest Florida market is part of an aggressive expansion throughout the state for J.McLaughlin. Last week the company opened its 14th store in Florida in Boca Raton. This week, J.McLaughlin is opening another store in Boca Grande. Another will open in Winter Park and the company is renovating its Vero Beach boutique.

Culver’s Custard opening Sarasota restaurant

Culver’s Restaurant will open its second Sarasota restaurant on Tamiami Trail later this year.

The Wisconsin-based chain, known for its “ButterBurgers” and frozen custard, opened its first store in the region at 2605 University Parkway in the University Groves. The 4,446-square-foot restaurant opened in April.

The new location is still under construction and won’t open until next year. It’s located south of Stickney Point Road not far from Westfield’s Sarasota Square Mall.

Walgreens to open in former Babies R Us space

Walgreens is currently renovating the Babies R Us space on Central Sarasota Parkway in Sarasota near Sarasota Square Mall. It is unclear when the new store will open.

The Babies R Us store, the only one in Sarasota, closed its doors for good in January.

Main Street to get a bowling alley, tenants to get facelift

Evie’s Tavern will open up a bowling alley on Main Street next door to Taco Bus, a popular Tampa Bay-based restaurant chain, said Norman Gollub, downtown economic development coordinator in Sarasota. Construction is ongoing at the one-story building which once housed the Bullet Hole and Tube Dude retail spaces.

Plans for the building’s new facade include setting store entrances back three feet from the property line to allow for plants more streetside space. The Drunken Poet and Pho Cali Noodle House restaurants will also get a facelift, Gollub said.

For more shopping news in Southwest Florida, follow reporter Justine Griffin on Twitter and Facebook or email her at justine.griffin@heraldtribune.com. Read What’s In Store in print on Tuesdays.

Alex and Ani and Fugates are the newest retailers to join Main Street in downtown Sarasota.

Alex and Ani, a national jewelry and accessories retailer, opened its first store in Sarasota on Tuesday. The retailer sells bracelets, necklaces and other unique accessories in boutiques across the country. The company was founded in 2004 and has grown aggressively since then. In 2011, the company appeared on the Inc. 500 list and increased its sales from $4.5 million to $80 million from 2010 to 2012.

Fugate’s is a island tradition with stores on Boca Grande and in Venice. The company’s third location will open at 1476 Main St., in Sarasota. The store sells men’s and women’s fashions, gifts, sundries and other accessories. The company sells apparel and gifts for shoppers of every age. The store opens in the former Kokonuts space on Oct. 30.

Photo by Thomas Bender, Herald-Tribune staff

For more shopping news in Southwest Florida, follow reporter Justine Griffin on Twitter and Facebook or email her at justine.griffin@heraldtribune.com. Read What’s In Store in print on Tuesdays.

Jackie Z Style & Co. will close its downtown Sarasota Main Street location next month as the locally-owned retailer prepares to move into the Mall at University Town Center.

The Jackie Z boutique will be one of few locally-owned boutique stores entering the mall, which will be predominantly filled with chain stores. Several new brands to the region, like Apple, Anthropologie, Crate & Barrel and others, will open inside the $315 million Mall at University Town Center next month on Oct. 16.

Originally, owner Jackie Zumba hoped to have two stores in Sarasota. But the landlord of the property at 1464 Main Street chose not to renew the lease for another year, Zumba said.

Zumba is also opening a store in St. Petersburg, at the retail revamp of BayWalk at Second Street and Second Avenue in downtown.

Jackie Z Style & Co. is hosting a moving sale this Friday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Main Street store. Shoppers can find items marked down by 70 percent, and enjoy refreshments provided by the store. The boutique carries brands such as Rieley, Sky, Zachary Prell, Mood of Norway, Trina Turk and Mr. Turk.

Zumba said the lease on the location is up on Nov. 1, but the store will likely close for good before then.

To see a full list of retailers coming to the Mall at University Town Center, click here.

The Herald-Tribune reported stores like Tommy Bahama, Brooks Brothers and others will open in the Mall at University Town Center last year. The 880,000-square-foot retail center will open October 16.

For more shopping news in Southwest Florida, follow reporter Justine Griffin on Twitter and Facebook or email her at justine.griffin@heraldtribune.com. Read What’s In Store in print on Tuesdays.

Great American Cookies and the Southeast Guide Dogs are moving in to the Mall at University Town Center.

Great American Cookies, a chain of independently owned cookie kiosks, will open a new stand inside the $315 million Mall at University Town Center, which is under construction at University Parkway and Interstate 75. The Atlanta-based company specializes in baking gourmet cookies, and has more than 290 stores in malls nationwide. Great American Cookies has one kiosk in Westfield Group’s Sarasota Square Mall, among other locations in the Tampa Bay area.

Southeast Guide Dogs, a Southwest Florida-based nonprofit group that raises and trains dogs for visually impaired people, will close its Main Street location and move into a new space inside the Mall at UTC. The organization has helped create more than 400 partnerships between dogs and humans. The group has several locations in Sarasota and Manatee counties, including a training and boarding campus in Palmetto.

Southeast Guide Dogs’ downtown Sarasota location will close on Sept. 20. The boutique store, which offers handling experiences with puppies and dogs, also sells puppy-themed merchandise. The store is having a closing sale and offering 40 percent off sales of all merchandise, including dog treats, T-shirts, gifts and more.

The new location in the Mall at UTC will be close to the Macy’s department store.

To see a full list of retailers and restaurants coming to the Mall at University Town Center, click here.

The Herald-Tribune reported stores like Apple, Anthropologie, Crate & Barrel and others will open in the Mall at University Town Center last year. The 880,000-square-foot retail center will open October 16.

For more shopping news in Southwest Florida, follow reporter Justine Griffin on Twitter and Facebook or email her at justine.griffin@heraldtribune.com. Read What’s In Store in print on Tuesdays.